Percy Jackson and The Power Within
by Ekole
Summary: Percy's life in camp Half-blood comes crashing down at one point. He abandons his girlfriend with only one hope, to protect her. Even though his life becomes miserable, a flash of hope appears and he is taken in by SHIELD. This is a story about Agent Jackson and we will walk with him as he struggles with his missions and his evil rival.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The day started fairly well, sitting under Thalia's tree with your girlfriend in your arms and the smell of raw strawberries filling the air can be classified as a fairly good day. Along the years of Percy's life he has learnt to enjoy the little things he came across with. Being a demigod can bring you full of surprises like eminent death, stupid prophecies that will make your head go haywire and bring you painful memories that will hunt you through out your life in your nightmares (like falling in Tartarus) and not to mention the demigod dreams.

"Percy" Annabeth said, snapping me out of my thoughts, "ever thought about having a life outside of camp, I mean besides going in quests, just having a normal life".

"Annabeth, you know better than me about the life of a demigod outside of camp"

"I know, I was just wandering" Annabeth said looking a bit rather down, "Its just that the last thing I want is another prophecy and another war, I am getting sick of this life Percy"

I didn't know what to say to her, I wanted to comfort her but I didn't know how. Not a lot of demigods made it to their adulthood, usually died young thanks to their demigod life. Now that there wasn't anything ahead of us and we were safe, as safe as a demigod can get, I couldn't help but feel empty. That hollow feeling that I lost too much, like a scar imprinted on my life string and everytime I think of my life I cant help but curse those cruel ladies who call themselves fates, of course I do that only in my head.

That evening I was walking towards the arena for sword practice. Annabeth just left an hour ago to Olympus for some project that I didn't bother asking about, knowing her that she would probably put me to sleep explaining her building structures.

As I got to the arena I was surprised to see Rachael, our oracle, sitting on one of the benches with unfocused eyes probably lost in thoughts. I went and sat beside her, she almost jumped seeing me until she got hold of her senses and sat back looking a bit rattled.

"Everything okay?" I asked. She was obviously looking troubled.

"You scared the hell out of me" she replied

"Whats wrong, you look out of place"

"I was waiting for you, I figured you would be here" she said. Looking at the distance with those unfocused eyes again.

"Okay" I said. She was starting to make me nervous, I was wondering what she wanted to say but I was afraid to find out. Surely my luck can't be that bad that there was another prophecy and another war. "What did you want to tell me?"

She looked at me, this time with sympathy, "Am I making you nervous" she asked.

"Oh gee, let me think, the spirit of Delphi wants to talk to me, why should I be nervous" I said sarcastically. As soon as the words left my mouth I realized my mistake. True that she was the oracle, but she was still a human. She might need a time off or maybe talk to someone. Even though she smiled I could see a look of hurt in her eyes. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that"

"Its fine, I got used to your lame sarcasms anyway" she said and then that disturbed expression came back. "I have bad news for you", said, "There has been another prophecy" she dropped her gaze on the ground, not looking at my eyes anymore.

I love to say that I took the news without breaking down, but inside I felt like I just got hit by a bulldozer. I didn't know what to say, it was just the thing Annabeth feared. Rachael looked at me again and took hold of my hand.

"Go to Chiron, he will explain everything to you. This should be kept only between us" she said with eyes full of sympathy, she knew how I would take the news. "Whatever Chiron says, just know that I will always believe you."

She stood up and let go of my hands and then questions started to erupt on my head. What prophecy? Does this mean another war? If it does than why should it be kept as a secret? What is my role in this prophecy? What did she mean she will always believe me?

I couldn't speak, I just watched her go. And then rage filled in. I couldn't think properly, I started to curse the fates and kill every dummy in front of me in the arena with riptide until there was nothing. I took a deep breath and started my way towards the big house to find Chiron. When I reached the porch and opened the door I saw Chiron in his wheelchair form staring contently at the blazing fire in the fireplace. He didn't even look up when I arrived and I assumed he have been waiting for me.

He looked at me and said smiling, "Percy my boy, please have a sit"

I was growing impatient, but I sat any way on the chair beside the table where Mr. D and Chiron used to play their card games. I wandered where Mr. D was right now.

"I am sure Rachael informed you about the prophecy"

I nodded

He looked at me skeptically and then pointed towards the table I was sitting beside. Somehow I didn't realize the piece of paper on the table earlier, which kind of disturbed me. I took the paper gingerly in my hand. It was a small piece of folded paper similar to the one which had the first great prophecy. I unfolded the paper and took a look at it.

 _A lost brother shall be reunited_

 _Heroes of the seven shall be threatened_

 _A single sacrifice shall be the cost_

 _To protect the loved one from being lost_

 _Therefore the hero must face a situation_

 _Where he will stand the outside world of civilization_

I read the prophecy again and again. Trying to devour everything it said but to no luck understanding any of it. _A lost brother shall be reunited_ whose brother? We have campers here everyday after the war. _Heroes of the seven shall be threatened_ Does this mean another war? _A single sacrifice shall be the cost_ _To protect the loved one from being lost_ These are the only lines that started to bug me. The rest didn't even make sense to me.

"Rachael delivered the prophecy to me this morning", Chiron finally said after the long silence.

"I don't understand, why are you telling this only to me" I asked, confused since Rachael told me to keep things only between us.

"The hero the prophecy is talking about refers to you Percy"

"What do you mean?"

Chiron looked at me sadly for a moment and then said, "a satyr reported a possible demigod at another summer camp. He said that this particular demigod can control water just like you."

It took a few minutes for me to understand what he was saying and then piece it altogether, so much for a hero.

"A lost brother shall be reunited" I recited, "but Chiron, how-"

"I don't know Percy, as much as I want to believe it is not you I cant. The prophecy also mentioned the seven. I have trained a lot of heroes Percy, I have helped them as a mentor. But in all those times I have seen only few who would really sacrifice themselves for the ones they love. And for all I know about you, you are the only one who would give up godhood for your loved ones."

I just stared at him, am I supposed to be happy about his raise or disappointed now that I am the hero in the prophecy…again.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The rest of the days were just a blur to me. I couldn't focus on almost anything. Annabeth asked me for the hundredth time that what was wrong. I didn't tell her anything and I felt bad for it. Chiron told me not to mention about the prophecy to anyone and I should pretend that it does not exist. I feel really bad about this specially keeping Annabeth in the dark, she has just as much right as I have to know about the prophecy, but according to Chiron keeping Annabeth from knowing is the most important piece of the puzzle. I have no idea what he meant by that but I didn't like it one bit.

One night in the dining pavilion everyone was met by a surprise, even though I knew it was coming I couldn't shake the feeling of dread.

"Perrrrcy" Grover called running towards me, "You need to see this"

The whole camp gathered around the big house wanting to see what all the commotion was about. There infront of the porch Chiron was standing and beside him was a boy of about the same age as mine, dark sea green eyes, a lean swimmers build body and an eye catching blond hair. That literally was the only difference between him and me, his blond hair and mine jet black, otherwise people would have easily called us twins. As I stood there Chiron started introducing him.

"Everyone, please meet Arnold Christopher, the son of Poseidon"

There was silence and everybody was staring at me and then back to Arnold as if expecting something big to happen, a tsunami or an earthquake or maybe just trying to tell the difference between our appearances and coming with the same hair conclusion.

"Percy" Chiron called, "will you be kind enough and give our new camper a tour and show him his cabin. All the others please get back to your regular routine and prepare yourselves if you have to for tomorrows capture the flag."

And with that Chiron and all the campers started to leave while murmuring about the recent event leaving only me and Arnold.

I went to him and took out my hand, "Percy Jackson" I said

He shook it, "Nice meeting you, I've heard a lot about you"

"You did?"

"Ofcourse, the whole time I was in my fathers palace under the sea you were like a celebrity to everyone. Father used to talk highly of you. To be honest, after father let me out of the sea I was looking forward in joining the camp only to see you."

I let that sink in. I don't know why I felt bad about having another demigod brother at first, maybe because of the prophecy, but It feels good to know that your dad and your brother thinks so highly of you, I guess I'm starting to like him.

"So you lived under the sea, huh?" I asked

"Yes, I grew up under the sea"

"Wow, do you have any idea whats going on in the outside world?"

"Actually I do, we have our own ways of keeping up to date."

"How come I didn't know that I don't have another demigod brother? Poseidon never told me anything about you."

After I said this, a weird expression came on his face, it almost looked like anger, but it vanished quickly.

"Father told me that my existence should be kept as a secret. With everything going on in the outside world he said that I should stay down. I helped him in the fight under the seas during the second titan war. Other than that I just trained and sometimes father would let me to go up and have a look around the mortal world."

As we talked I didn't realize when we started walking. After I finished showing him around the camp we went to our cabin where there was another bed waiting for Arnold. We started talking again about the New York alien invasion last week when suddenly the door opened revealing Annabeth.

She looked at me and then at Arnold and then went back outside. I went after her and closed the door behind me. It was chilly outside and I could see Annabeth shivering slightly. Her blonde hair looked like it was glowing under the moon light. She looked at me and smiled.

"I guess no more late night visits" she said looking past me at the door indicating Arnold.

I was disappointed a little bit at that. Being alone in a cabin also meant having a bit of privacy, but now with Arnold here I couldn't have the whole cabin for my own.

"We could try hitting him on the head and make him unconscious" I said hopefully.

She laughed and then wrapped her arms around my neck and gave a breathtaking kiss.

After pulling out she said, "I know you wouldn't do that to your brother"

"I would do anything to have some quality time with my girlfriend" I said and gave her another kiss.

The next day in capture the flag Arnold's name was spread all through the camp again. He fought like a demon. Even though we won thanks to Annabeth's strategy, we were still caught off guard by his skills. The next few days past by and I wasn't thinking about the prophecy anymore, at least tried not to. Arnold was getting popular among the campers way faster than my likings. I wasn't jealous of him, it just reminded of the bullies I had in my schools before turning into bullies. The fact that he was making close connections with the seven also disturbed me. He hangs around with Jason and leo a lot these days. But then he did something I wasn't expecting, he started hitting on Annabeth. That was the last straw, I wanted to hit him like a ragdoll and throw him all the way to tartarus. But Annabeth kept on insisting that there was no need and she could take care of herself.

The rumors of Arnold hitting on Annabeth and Percy Jackson wanting to tear him to pieces spread across the whole camp as fast as a bullet train. The little part I liked about him was long gone. We didn't talk to each other anymore and I preferred it that way. If he did try to say anything to me I would punch him right there.

Days kept on passing just like that, until April finally came by bringing April fool with it.

Its just proves how cruel life is, you spent all your life trying to make it better. And then it takes only one day to make your life tumble down allover you. Only one day to make your life hell. April fool, the day my life came tumbling down, the day my life turned into its own tartarus, the day I lost her.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

I woke up in the morning, fresh and ready for another day. I changed into a camp half-blood T-shirt and a pair of clean jeans. Arnold was no where to be seen, a bit unusual for him since he usually woke up right after me or maybe take another half an hour. Before I started to go for the door and get out, I reached for my pocket to see if I had riptide with me, just a habit, but came to see that it was empty and riptide was nowhere to be seen. I was frantic, never have I even dreamed of losing riptide. I started searching the whole cabin, tearing covers from its bed, throwing clothes all over the place checking pockets, but coming to no success finding it.

Who could have taken it? I asked to myself, even though I knew the answer already. I stormed off from my cabin and started looking for Arnold. It couldn't have been anyone else. He went too far with this, I have spared him once when he started hitting on Annabeth, trusting Annabeth's judgement. But now it looks like he decided on a frontal assault. This time there will be no sparing, not even Annabeth can make me otherwise.

It was 7:30 in the morning, campers already started their day. The satyrs could be seen in the volleyball pitch, picking teams. The dining pavilion was empty, except for the Stoll brothers. Its April Fools day, I made a mental note to keep an eye on those brothers later. I went for the stables.

"Hey, Yo boss", Blackjack whined (or whatever horses do)

"Blackjack, have you seen that new Poseidon kid come here this morning?"

"You mean that kid you don't like?"

I sighed, "Yes Blackjack, that kid I don't like"

"Yeah! Oh yeah I did see him boss. He went towards the canoe lake, and I am telling you that kid looked up to no good. He gives me the creeps."

"Thanks buddy, I have a score to settle with him"

"Yeah boss, hit him boss. Show him whose the boss!"

"You just won yourself a box of donuts, see you later" I said and started walking towards the lake, barely controlling my anger. I didn't knew what I was going to do. If he has riptide it means he is going to be armed. I had to take advantage of the water, but could I harm him? He was the son of Poseidon as well. The only other thing I had at my disposal was the shield Tyson gave me. I wasn't thinking of attacking, I just knew he wasn't going to play along very well. What if he didn't have the sword at all? I decided to put that thought aside. That sword meant everything to me, it couldn't just disappear.

Just when I reached the lake, I saw a scene so horrifying and confusing at the same time that I just stood frozen to the ground. There, thirty feet ahead of me, beside the lake, Jason was lying on the ground unconscious. And standing right above him, Riptide gleaming in his hand was…. was me?

The guy looked at me and gave me a some sort of devilish grin that I never thought that I could do. And with that he thrust Riptide right through Jason's chest penetrating what should have been his heart. That's what got me moving again, I started sprinting towards my lookalike with a hope to tackle him and go down fist fighting. But somewhere in the back of my head I knew that it was too late.

Before I could get close to him he let go of the sword hilt, gave one last look at me and jumped into the lake. By the time I reached the edge of the lake he was nowhere to be seen. I went back to Jason and I couldn't look. He was there with a pool of blood around him and Riptide protruding from his chest, lying there still and lifeless. There was thunder somewhere in New York but I couldn't tune in on it. The first line from the prophecy kept on bugging inside my head _Heroes of the seven shall be threatened._

Conner was the first one to arrive at the scene of crime and as he looked from the limp body to the sword and finally to me, his face told me that I was in trouble.

"Hey Connor, listen man-" I started to say, but he already started running like I was going to come after him next. I looked back at Jason and was half hoping for him to jump back alive and shout 'APRIL FOOL'.

"Percy, can you please explain to us what happened in the canoe lake." Chiron asked for the fourth time.

"I told you, when I reached the scene Jason was lying on the ground unconscious and someone was standing right over him." We were in the big house in front of the fireplace. Chiron and all the cabin councilors were present. I was sitting in a chair right in the middle of the group. Annabeth was standing right beside me, defending me by any means even though she knew this was a losing trial.

"But Percy", Chiron started again "What you are saying doesn't make sense-"

"But what I am saying is true, I saw him, he looked just like me."

"Chiron" Annabeth said, "You know it is not impossible. There is someone in this camp who can pull something like that off."

She was referring to Arnold, which I agree with. The guy only needed to dye his hair and you could pull a Percy out of him.

"Oh you better not bring Arnold into this. Just because he chose me over you does not mean you can involve him in this shit." Alexandria said. She was this Aphrodite girl who was Arnold's girlfriend, or was going to be, it was never made official anyway. She was a type of girl always wanting to be noticed by boys. Dark hair, hazel coloured eyes, tall, a very noticeable body structure and of course you will never see her without any makeup.

"What made you even think that I fell for your ridiculous boyfriend? You are just a bitch being used." Annabeth said raising her voice and not bothering her language.

"Oh yeah? After he rejected you, you made lies about him hitting on you only to get his reputation down. You are no less than a bitch yourself."

Before Annabeth could say anything to that Chiron interrupted, "Alexandria, may I ask what you are doing here. This is a council's meeting"

She gave a very irritated sigh, crossed her arms and said, "Since I knew Annabeth was in the council meeting, I knew she would bring my boyfriend into this mess and I guessed right. That's why I came to say something" Annabeth was now glaring daggers at her, "When the incident happened this morning, Arnold was with me and he has nothing to do with this, so there better be no comments about him"

And with that she left. There was a silence, sometimes broken by the stifled sob of Pieper. Out of all the people I felt very sorry for her. I cant even think of loosing Annabeth. I was about to curse myself for not saving Jason when Chiron spoke up, surprising everyone. "If all the council members pardon me, I would like to have a private word with Percy here."

Everyone started to leave, glancing from Chiron to me, but not complaining. Jason's death created a mood shift throughout the camp. For the first time in a council's meeting I haven't heard Clarisse, the daughter of Ares, say a word. Everyone left until there was only me, Chiron and Annabeth.

"Annabeth" Chiron said.

"But Chiron, I-"

"I'm requesting"

Annabeth gave me a look and I gave her an encouraging smile. She gave a gentle squeeze on my shoulder and left not saying another word.

"Chiron" I started, "You have to believe me, I didn't kill Jason."

"Calm down child, I know you didn't"

I felt half of the weight lift from my shoulders already.

"It's the prophecy isn't it." I asked, more like a statement.

"Maybe, but we still cant tell"

"But it fits with the first line of the prophecy!"

"Percy, you know prophecies and their twisted nature. We cannot make any rash decisions."

I let out a sigh. I still couldn't get rid of the scene of Jason and the mysterious lookalike out of my head. And I still couldn't help but feel guilty, maybe if I reacted faster I could save him.

"You should not blame yourself Percy" Chiron said, voicing my thoughts.

"You know me too well Chiron" I said, "Does Thalia know about this?"

"She has been informed. She is on her way."

"Any news from upstairs?" I asked, I think I might have started a war.

Chiron looked out the window, at the strawberry fields, Thalia's pine tree, suddenly very silent, not even the sound of wind blowing. Jason's death was still lurking out there and my heart still felt like lead, I have lost another friend.

"Zeus is angry" Chiron finally spoke, coming out of his thoughts, "The Olympians came to a decision before sides can be taken and another war break out."

"And what is that?" I asked, even though my hands were shaking from finding out.

"Zeus has called on a trial. Today at noon, you should be present in front of the gods. As much as I hate to say this Percy, your fate now rests in their hands."

Well, I must have seen something like this coming. My luck possibly couldn't get any better, could it?

And from that moment I lost hope and knew that no one would shout out 'APRIL FOOL'.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"This is unacceptable !" Zeus bellowed from his throne. I was standing in the middle of the throne room with the twelve Olympians around me. Zeus was looking with a face contorted with rage. The others looked like they were trying not to believe the situation but failing rapidly. Of course with the exception of Ares as he had a dreamy expression on the punishments I was about to face. I on the other hand was staring at my shoes toned out of the conversation and thinking about the recent events that took place.

"Percy's fate is clear" Zeus continued. I looked up and saw him staring right through my eyes. "You have killed my son Perseus. You will suffer death-"

"Thats enough!" Poseidon said raising his voice up to a level that almost shook the throne room. "You are sentencing my son for a crime that there is no proof he did it."

"You dare raise your voice on me Poseidon."

They glared at each other for a full minute. Thunder could be heard rolling somewhere outside. Zeus spoke again, this time in a calm and deadly voice.

' I am not blinded by my sons's death brother, I know what I am doing. Jason, as he rests in Elysium, has been questioned about his attacker and he has confirmed that it was non other than Perseus.'

Poseidon broke his gaze from Zeus and looked towards the god of dead, only to see him nod but surprisingly reluctant. Poseidon gave a weary sigh and my heart pang with guilt as my father was about to loose his son.

Before Zeus could start again Artemis interrupted.

"Wait. Father you should give him a chance to speak at the least" Seeing her father not saying a word she turned towards me with a very annoyed expression. "Speak demigod, you haven't spoken a word since the start of the council. It is not in your nature to keep silent, so speak."

Everyone was looking at me expectantly with little hope that I just might change the tide of this trial. What they didn't know was the full fledged war inside me. The pain, the guilt, the sadness all washing over me like bullets from an automatic gun. It then downed on me that my next few words was about to seal my fate. Seal me from the world, from my family, friends, Annabeth. The prophecy now made sense and I was about to die without anyone but Chiron and Rachael knowing the truth.

I looked at Zeus straight in the eye and said my final words... or so I thought.

"I... I killed Jason. With my own hands"

Now before I confuse you even more and before you start judging me too harshly, let me take you a couple while back.

11:00 am (one hour before trial)

After the council meeting and my conversation with Chiron, I ended up sitting under Thalia's pine tree. I didn't see Annabeth anywhere, and honestly I wasn't very eager to find her. I needed some time alone, thats why I considered going to my cabin but then again pushed it aside, because chances were there that I might go into Arnold. And I couldn't trust myself to say that the meeting would only be some chit-chat. The camp looked beautiful from my vantage point and I was still dreading on the fact that something might go wrong and I wouldn't be able to see this place again.

The hunters arrived. I saw a small figure, running towards the infirmary where Jason's body was wrapped up in a clean sheet of cloth, lying on one of the cots. The scene made my heart ache, it was Thalia, it was her for sure. How was I ever to face her again? As selfish as it was I hoped that moment would never come.

"She's broken down"

I nearly jumped. Standing up and looking behind I saw Artemis, goddess of the hunt and moon standing by the tree trunk, arms folded. She had a soft glow with her that only a moon could create, her silver parka only intensifying it.

I bowed, but it turned out to be quiet hasty. The moon goddess let out a chuckle despite the current environment. Though it did help, I felt a gentle warm spread throughout my chest. Calmness in a sea of swirling emotions.

"You were never good with formalities Percy." She said in her soothing voice.

"Sorry" I muttered.

"Its fine. Sit, we have a lot to talk." She sat on the ground, her back against the tree.

I followed suit and sat cross legged facing her.

"I heard what happened, but I need to hear it from you. Just tell me what you have brought upon yourself this time."

I explained to her from the beginning. The arrival of Arnold, the conversations we had about his past, his rising popularity among the campers, the start of our quarrel. I went on and she listened patiently, taking in every word and checking my body language for any lies. I told her about the scene I saw beside the canoe lake and ended with the event in the council meeting. I left out the part about the prophecy, keeping my word to Chiron.

After finishing both of us sat in silence for a while before Artemis spoke again.

"I believe you"

Those three words couldn't have been more sweeter and relieving, I thought.

"But,"she continued, "convincing the other Olympian however will not be easy. Firstly this is the son of Zeus we are talking about, that stand as a major problem. And secondly you know how stubborn we are. We don't see things in different points of view, right now to them you are a murderer and a traitor to the Greek community."

Typical, I thought. The slightest hope just got squished into nothingness by her last words. "What am I going to do now?"

"Well, its never too late to bind an oath with the Styx." She said, shrugging "Unless of course you are lying."

"The oath" I said to myself. Then it registered, "The Oath!"

The idea was so simple and obvious I couldn't help but erupt into a fit of laughter."Oh man, how come I never thought of that!" I got so teary eyed that I didn't notice the sudden scowl on Artemis' face.

"What?" I asked confused.

"Did you just call me a man?"

"What? No! Its just a figure of speech people use when, when..."

"Nevermind", she said with-did she just roll her eyes?- and stood up."You mortals make no sense sometimes. Just don't say something like that in front of me again."

I nodded and got on my feet. "And one more thing," she said before turning to leave,"You are a good man Percy, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. See you in Olympus."

She started to glow. Knowing what was about to happen I averted my eyes and looked away. The stress was thankfully gone but the bubble of hope that formed in my chest suddenly turned into guilt when I remembered Jason. There was no way I could get him back. I was just about to sit down again when I heard someone calling my name.

Grover was running, no, sprinting towards me and I knew just then that something was , really wrong.

"Percy", he said when he reached. He was panting so hard I barely heard my name."Where the hell were you? I searched the whole camp and you were here? Man you really know how to tick a goat off."

"Quit rambling. What's wrong?"

After taking a few deep breaths, what he said next gave me chills that I could feel along my spine."You have to come with me. It's..it's Annabeth"

(-)

My mind went blank, but I followed Grover behind his heels-hooves-and before I knew it, we arrived at the least place I wanted to see Annabeth at that time, the infirmary.

Despite the hot weather outside, the infirmary felt cold. Two rows of cots lay on both sides of the cabin. On the far left corner a white curtain was displayed covering the last cot in the row and there was no need for anyone to tell me that Jason's body lay there. A heart broken sob could be heard and I tried playing deaf ears to it as much as I could. A few cots down the right row, Annabeth was lying unconscious. Hazel was there as well, sitting by her side while Will checked on Annabeth.

Hazel was the first to notice me and Grover, she stood from Annabeth's side and slowly walked towards us with a grim expression.

"What happened?", I asked, dreading the question.

"She was in her cabin," She started. "Percy, I don't really know. I was with Grover, then Malcom came to me and said Annabeth passed out. Grover went looking for you and-"

"Hazel," I cut in. "is she going to be okay?"

Hazel looked worried, which scared me. She looked sideways at Will who was watching us with a blank expression.

I was running out of patience,"Can someone answer me!" I yelled.

Will looked as if he was about to say something but hesitated. Seeing all these, I walked past them and sat beside Annabeth on her cot. My heart gave a lurch when I saw her, she looked as pale as a ghost. I almost yelped when I touched her hand and felt the coldness on her skin.

"Look, Percy, you need to...", Will started, but after seeing my cold glare he seemed to reconsider what he was about to say."Fine, I'll get to the point. At first we thought she was poisoned. I already took every type of test you could think of but there is no sign of anything poisonous in her blood. Right now it looks like she is in some kind of coma, but... it doesn't make any sense. She doesn't have any brain damage and neither is there any record of her ever having one, so we can only presume. And the other factor is that she is running cold. I can't tell why but her skin is getting colder by every passing minute."

I was clearly not satisfied by his proclamation. Its not that he just spitted out one bad news after the other, but the fact that Will couldn't do anything about it. I always trusted his ability to fix people and right now he just seemed to ruin it. Will happened to read my expression.

"Look, I am not supposed to be saying this, but I am proud enough of my skills to tell you that whatever happened to Annabeth might even take Apollo some hell of a time to figure it out. I mean, I haven't seen anything like this before."

I tried composing myself. It wasn't Will's fault. But there was something behind this or maybe someone...

It couldn't be a coincidence. Why would she fall into a comma just the hour before my trial?

Letting out a long sigh I calmed myself.

"Are you sure she isn't poisoned?", I asked Will," Or maybe some sort of magic involved?"

"No. You can trust me on that one, she is not poisoned. Though it does seem more likely, given the current circumstances." He said looking at me wearily."But if there really is poison in her blood, it's literally invisible."

"And there is no magic." Hazel said shaking her head. " If you alter reality or go against natural laws, it will always leave an essence, something like a trail. Usually appears like an aura, which is only visible if you see deeper into layers of the mist. I can see deep enough to tell you that there is no magic, not the slightest trail of it."

I ran a hand through my hair. All these was making me tired, mentally.

"Are you telling me that there is nothing we can do about her right now?" I miserably asked. Hazel came to my side and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"Percy, Annabeth is strong, you know she is going to make it. Have faith, if she ever heard we were crying by her bed once she wakes up, she might as well give all of us free judo flips." Hazel said smiling feebly. The thought made my own lips curl up. I remembered very well the previous time Annabeth did that to me, though it was a long time ago, I still remembered the kiss that was followed by it and it made my heart break allover again.

I looked at her one more time; she looked peaceful, like someone about to go to sleep for eternity. At the thought, I grimaced and pushed it aside. She was going to be okay. Removing a strand of her curly blonde hair from her face, I kissed her hand.

I stood up and walked towards the door, leaving the others behind. Grover was on my heels and I didn't complain, I needed someone to talk to, desperately. I reached the threshold when a stifled sob caused me to stop on my tracks. It happened so fast and unexpectedly that I didn't have time to react. Someone tackled me from the back, so hard that we almost flew out of the door, landed on my back and rolled a few times until the attacker was on top of me. It was Thalia and she looked... horrible. Tears on her face glistened like glitter, her hair was a complete mess, sticking out from here and there as if she tried pulling them apart from her scalp. I was so overwhelmed that I just lay there, then came the punches. One after the other she threw her fists at my face, but the funny thing was that my heart was doing a far greater job than her in bringing pain. Seeing her in this condition was a hurtful torture to endure, but I also didn't want a broken nose.

Grabbing her incoming knuckles, I managed to pull myself out from underneath her, all the while she struggled to get her hands free from my grip. She finally gave up and then just like that, she burst into tears. We just sat there, quiet awkwardly, me still holding her wrists while Thalia's shoulder shook without control.

Not knowing what else to do, I pulled her into a hug and felt her pouring all her pain on my chest, soaking my T-shirt.

Grover, Hazel and Will stood a few feet away. Looking at the interaction with genuine sympathy. There wasn't anyone else around, and I thanked the gods for that.

After almost a minute, Thalia pulled away and pushed me hard. And then spoke only one word, "Why?"

"I swear Thalia, I didn't do it." I said keeping my voice steady.

She just looked at me. The fear of breaking down again evident in her eyes. Standing up, Thalia started her way back to the infirmary, not giving a second glance behind. I just sat there and eyed the retreating figure until Grover came over and lend a hand. I didn't take it. Without another word I started walking. Towards where? Didn't really know, anywhere far from the infirmary.

"Percy!" Grover called, I didn't stop. He ran until he caught up with me."Percy, come on man just wait."

I halted, turned around and almost shouted at his face, " What!"

Grover backed a few steps at my sudden outburst, a look of hurt flashed across his face."Chiron asked me to tell you that Aegis is waiting for you with his van." He shrugged, " Just thought you should know." With that he started to walk away, his head hanging low.

It took me a few seconds to gather myself up and realize what I had just done. All these was making me loose it."Grover!"

He stopped and turned around, looking at me curiously. "I'm sorry." I said.

He shook his head, surprising me. "Don't be Perce. I understand what you are going through and I don't blame you. So don't worry, I am not considering you as a jerk, yet.", he said smiling." And the trial is going to be fine as well, I am thinking about throwing a party when Arnold is kicked out of camp."

To be honest, I was slightly shocked by Grover's words. It just wasn't like him to be so... apprehensible. "Um, okay, thanks" I said lamely. Grover gave a thumbs up and started walking away.

The journey back to Thalia's tree was painful. My insides were burning out every time I thought back to Thalia. What made everything even more crappy was Annabeth's state. I couldn't exactly piece it all together, because every time I processed the thought it resolved back to one person, Arnold. And at the same time it didn't make any sense, like what did he exactly do that made Annabeth go in a coma? There were no physical injuries, no magic, no poison, no brain damage, no nothing. It gave me a headache. Just when I reached the top of the hill and thought my day couldn't get any better, I was met with the least likely person to come and see me off.

"Sorry to break this to you Arnold.", I said giving him the coldest glare I could come up with."But its too late to apologize."

Arnold just smiled, leaning casually against Thalia's pine tree, arms crossed. His slick blond hair glinting like crazy under the sun.

"Give me some credit Percy, you cant expect me to back down that soon, where is the fun in that?"

There, one sentence and he somehow managed to get under my skin. Gritting my teeth I kept my cool and used all my willpower not to strangle him.

"What are you doing here?" I asked casually. " If I were you I would be packing my stuff right now, you don't want an angry Zeus stuck on your back, trust me on that one." I said.

It was weird talking with Arnold, as if I was rehearsing for a speech in front of a mirror, only that the reflection wasn't moving along. And of course the blond hair.

Arnold gave a small chuckle and shook his head. "You don't get it Percy, you're already dead. The moment you set foot on Olympus, Zeus will blast you to the Underworld. Unless of course if he thinks Tartarus suits you even better."He said, then turned his expression into mock sympathy."Sorry to say this, but you don't have any escape."

This time I let out a laugh of my own."You know what Arnold? I wont even bother ask about why you killed Jason only to frame me and what are your other future evil plots. I am going to Olympus right now and once they know the truth I will be happy to end your life myself."

Okay, those were considerably harsh words to ever come out of my mouth, but it didn't really matter to me, not anymore. What he did to Jason was about to cost him and I was gonna make sure that happened. I didn't wait around to see if my words affected him or anything. Without giving another conclusion I pushed past him to start my way towards the van down the hill.

"If you are planning to prove the Olympians by swearing off the Styx, think again." I heard him say from my back. I turned to look at him again. I wouldn't have bothered, but something in his tone made me snap.

"Huh, and why is that?" I asked.

"Because what I am about to say will make you think twice." He replied.

"Don't waste my time."

He smiled again, actually it was there the whole time which really ticked me off.

"A very unusual time for your girlfriend to fall in a coma, don't you think?"

My mind instantly jumped on Annabeth lying unconscious in the infirmary. I gritted my teeth. My hands clenched into fists due to the sudden rage boiling inside me, threatening to spill out any second. I only narrowed my eyes at him, not saying anything, because if I was about to say anything, it would include my fist and someone's broken jaw.

Looking at my expression he seemed to get the message.

"She's fine, at least for now." He said. "Her breakfast was poisoned this morning. Thanks to that chick Alexandria. She is quite useful these days, I believe her charm speaks almost out do Pieper."

"SHUT UP ARNOLD!" I screamed, no longer able to keep that boiling rage at bay."There is no poison! Will checked her blood! For Hades' sake stop lying for once and tell me what you did to her!"

I didn't even provide him the time to respond, grabbing his shirt collar I pushed him against a tree trunk and refused to let go. To my surprise he just laughed.

"But I am not lying Percy." He said and just like that he stopped, any sign that he was laughing or even smiling totally gone. Then his demeanor started changing into what looked like seriousness." Now lay of me if you want to know what happened. And why I'm here."

I would've put up a fight, but it wasn't only about me or Jason anymore. If what Arnold said was true, than for Annabeth's sake I had to play it cool with him.

Shoving him against the tree, I heard him letting out a grunt, which though was satisfying, not a very smart move. He cursed under his breath audibly and for a moment it seemed as if he was about to make a move against me, but then again thought otherwise.

Fixing his white linen shirt collar he looked back up with a straight face, his lips forming a thin line.

"Annabeth was poisoned." He started." There is a reason of course why your friend Will couldn't figure it out. The poison itself is ancient, created at some point in history. Its formula so complex that it was never meant to be understood by mortals. I had a... friend, who helped me brew the poison during my stay in father's castle."

His expression was suddenly lost. He got that look people get when they rehearse some old memory. His eyes became unfocused and dazed."It wasn't easy. We had to do lots of research, spending day and night trying to figure it out. She was good at potions, would have been impossible without her. We did succeed in the end, took us years. We thought that was it, everything was going according to plan. But the achievement came with a cost, a terrible cost.."

He suddenly blinked and looked startled, as if recovering from a trance. Frowning slightly he got back to the point."Will couldn't find anything in Annabeth's blood because that's just how it works. The poison was designed to blend with its surrounding, making it impossible for almost anyone to differ it from the victim's own cells. It is such an ingenious work that it would make Apollo sweat through the whole process to find the cure. And unfortunately, Annabeth doesn't have that much time." Anything he said before completely swept away from my mind at the mention of Annabeth. I didn't know for sure but to him I must have looked pale.

"Although it's your lucky day," he went on."cause I am about to offer you a choice."

Swallowing hard I finally let out."What do you want?"

The desperation laced with it however didn't go unnoticed by my half-brother.

The corners of his mouth tugged up. He looked so evil, I was actually amazed that I could pull a face like that.

"I only ask of one thing brother," he said."Take Jason's death on your own shoulders and convince the Olympians that you did it."

Somehow I knew that was coming. He knew my fatal flaw and he was using it against me with full swing. He knew I would not refuse, as I would do anything for Annabeth. It was difficult to register what was happening, but truth was evident, the fates were cruel.

"In exchange," Arnold continued."I will make sure Annabeth has the antidote, before it's too late. I swear it on the Styx."

It was a clear and sunny morning. Still, the faint sound of thunder could be heard rolling somewhere far from long island.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked. Sounding like a deflating balloon.

He sighed. Turning around he faced the camp. Everything was quiet, the usual bustle of

campers going to their respective classes was missing. The volleyball field and the canoe lake were empty. Once in a while figures could be seen walking around, heads hanging low. The whole air surrounding the camp seemed to be very thick, giving everything a sulking mood.

"Sixteen years Percy, I have been prisoned in my father's domain for sixteen years. Living at the bottom of the ocean with sea creatures moving around and looking at you as if you were an alien from outer space is not what I would describe a happy childhood. I was an outcast, but it wasn't something I couldn't handle. Things actually started to take for a better turn at some point. I made a friend and father started training me in combat. My curiosity for the world above the sea was overwhelming, but I wasn't allowed to go, because I was told that it was dangerous, because of a certain prophecy. But other than that, life was good." He turned to look at me again and I saw his face held a very bitter expression."And guess what happened next?"

Of course I didn't say anything. Usually I would have come up with something smart, but the hollow feeling of the storm that was about to come kept me silent.

"You happened." He claimed. I was slightly taken aback. Furrowing my eyebrows I looked at him with confusion."Every day, every hour I had to come across your name. You were a freaking celebrity down there and everyone looked at me and thought how I could even dare to be your brother." His voice was rising steadily and I wondered how long until he lost it. "Percy Jackson this, Percy Jackson that, might be music to your ears but for me all these was unbearable. I led an entire army against Oceanus during the Titan war, no one even glanced upon me after that when they heard the great Perseus fulfilling his prophecy and saving Olympus." He sounded so bitter I almost felt pity for him, then his next words did actually made me feel sorry." Even father didn't pay me visits any more, because he was too busy with his other beloved son."

(-)

In the next few minutes, I was Sitting inside the camp's delivery van heading towards the empire state building. Arnold's words still buzzed inside my head, making me realize more and more why the kid was playing this dangerous game.

Despite my loathe towards him I actually felt bad. He was a great fighter and I wouldn't be surprised if he did led an army. He was neglected, just because I had an upper hand in fame under water and the poor guy just happened to have grown up in it. But what mostly shocked me was my dad. Did he really stopped paying attention to his other son? Would he do the same to me if I ever failed him?

Trying not to think about anything else I closed my eyes and focused on the situation at hand. I was practically torn up, the idea of Annabeth lying on that cot and never waking up scared me to the root, but the prospect of going to Olympus and lying to the gods shook me with fear.

And that's pretty much how I ended up with twelve wide eyed Olympians boring at me with their fierce gazes. The shocked silence didn't last though, broken by an angry Artemis."What in the Hades happened to you! Why are you lying!"

"I am not interested in joining this conversation," Hades bellowed from the other end."So stop using my name at your own pleasure!"

Ares looked as if Christmas was home."The pig finally admits! I told you he cannot be trusted, he should be punished!"

There were other comments and curses thrown here and there while I stood in the midst of it looking no less than dumb. The eruption lasted until I could tell that sides were taken. I saw my dad and realized that he didn't say a word after my brilliant-trying to save my girlfriend-truth. His sea green eyes that always looked bright and full of life seemed to be fading. Seeing him like this I felt a familiar tug in my chest, my mom.

"Silence!" Zeus' voice rang throughout the hall, his lightning bolt appearing in his hands from nowhere. The shrillness of his voice was so high I had to cover my ears with both hands. The council immediately fell into an unnatural silence, as if the air was sucked out of their windpipes.

"Perseus has admitted to be guilty. Does anyone dare say otherwise?" Not a single sound was made. I started to wonder if Zeus did literally knock the air out of them. At the obvious sign of silence, Zeus continued, but only to be interrupted.

"Oh for uncle Hade's sake, we cant kill him. That would be too... barbaric." Everyone in the room snapped their heads towards the speaker. Apollo recoiled slightly at the sudden attention, specially to a threatening glare from Hades.

"I mean... he did save our Olympian butts twice till now. Shouldn't we take that as a count?"

Again everyone turned their attention to their king who was giving Apollo murderous looks. I eyed Apollo curiously. It wasn't likely of him to participate in any meeting. Usually he would just sit and listen to his ipod or try to pick on his sister. In this case however, Apollo was giving an interest to the situation, which is saying something.

That was when the fact hit me. It hit me so hard I staggered mentally. Apollo knows about the latest prophecy. It didn't take a genius to figure it out, he is the god of prophecies. But one thing was clear, Apollo wasn't too eager to let the gods know about it.

Poseidon finally spoke up."Apollo is right. Percy did save Olympus multiple times and has played a great role in uniting the Greeks and the Romans. Death is something my son does not deserve."

Zeus was fuming. I was quiet sure that he wasn't going to let this go that easily.

"If that is what you say so Poseidon, then there will only be one way to justify this. We shall vote." He claimed."Either he will die or be banished for his entire life from both Greek and Roman camps. He will have no connections or whatsoever with the gods. He will live as a mortal and finally die as one."

Another silence enveloped the throne room as he finished. I stood aghast, there actually was a chance for me to live. Though I still didn't lift my hopes , not yet.

"All in favour of death." Zeus' voice echoed the hall. Four hands rose. I clenched my teeth tight when I saw one of them was Athena. The other three included Zeus, Hera and Ares.

Zeus looked around and I saw his face fall. He stalled time for a whole minute and when he saw no change in his number of votes he moved on."All those favouring banishment."

Not a single hand rose and I couldn't decipher why. Surely they couldn't care about me that much that they weren't able to stand my banishment. I mentally laughed at that thought. Poseidon was the first to raise his hand, then Hermes, Apollo, Aphrodite, an angry Artemis and rest of the Olympians with exception of the opposition followed suit.

At this point, Zeus was trembling with rage. Sparks flying here and there from his bolt.

"Very well. You are henceforth banished." Zeus said, still looking murderous."But remember one thing son of Poseidon. If I catch a whiff of you doing any business that threatens the agreement of your banishment, know that you will be the first demigod ever alive to face my wrath on full scale."

With that happy note, he tightened his grip on his bolt and aimed it right at me.

"Wait!" Poseidon called, looking at me worriedly."Where are you sending him?"

"That is already decided brother."I flinched when I saw his eyes, glinting with hunger and anticipation. "I'll make sure his banishment takes the most out of him."

Poseidon's eyes went wide. Before I could make out what was going on, I was hit square on the chest with a force equal to a thousand volts of electricity. The pain was agonizing, but thankfully short lived as dark spots fiddled with my vision. The gleam of the throne room faded away and I wondered if I could ever see it again. My mom and Annabeth were my last thought as a pool of darkness drowned me.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Arnold hates it when things don't go according to plan. True, that Percy was out of his way. True, that most campers were now convinced Percy killed Jason. True, that the seven-now five-are busy at each other's throats claiming that they should go and look for Percy.

But the flaw in the plan? Percy is not dead.

The Olympians have gone too soft among the years. Banishing Percy was something Arnold did not foresee.

Frustrated, he kicked the sand beneath his feet, sending dirt everywhere. The sea always calmed him down. Sitting on the shoreline and looking far off the horizon made every other worry seem insignificant. It was night time and past curfew. He didn't have to worry about harpies, there was a whole ocean in front of him, looking inviting as always. It has been ten hours since Percy's banishment and no one other than Zeus knows about his whereabouts. Things may not have gone hundred percent according to plan, but it would have to do. This was just the beginning, the first step towards a great change in human history and he would accomplish it. If not for himself, then for her.

(-)

Spitting sand from my mouth I tried sitting up slowly. There was slight dizziness and the pain I felt when Zeus hit me was gone. There was something off, an intense heat kept beating down on my back. My heat receptors started coming back online and it was then that I noticed the temperature. I felt like a sausage being fried in a frying pan. I knew it could get pretty hot in New York, but this? Then I remembered that I was banished and got myself teleported by Zeus' lightning bolt express. Looking around what I saw shocked me for good. This was what Zeus had in his mind? I couldn't help but give credit to the god's thinking. The one place where he could send a son of Poseidon... the desert.

Stretching miles after miles all I could see were red sand and dirt. Mighty dunes stood like waves in the sea of sand. No sign of life, no clouds, no humidity. The blow of wind I felt against my skin from time to time was hot, not helping in the current circumstances.

I simply didn't know what to do. The pain of the recent loss felt heavy and raw in my chest. There was a strong desire, for a moment, to just curl up in place and forget all about dignity and courage and being a demigod hero, ex-hero of Olympus. Even as a powerful demigod the pain felt too much to bear. Guilty, because I haven't even thought about informing my mom before coming to Olympus. Hurt, because I couldn't see her or Annabeth again. Angry, I don't think I should even mention it. Confused, no idea what to do right now. Relief, in a very small amount, that I was still alive, but why in a small amount? Because I was probably going to die out of thirst and hunger anyway.

All in all, I decided to move on, still keeping hope locked locked up in that jar. Because that's just who I am, stubborn as hell when it comes to life and death.

By looking at the sun, I tried making out the time. It was somewhere around 2 to 3 pm, great time for a stroll out in the desert. Taking a wild guess, I started heading south. As I walked, instinctively placed my hands in my pocket and relief washed over me like never before. The familiar smooth and cool surface of my ballpoint pen under my finger tips felt nice. At the same time I realized I was wearing a watch, the one Tyson gave long time ago. The sudden revelation made me completely dumbstruck. I was wearing a watch which tells time. It was all I could do not to smack myself on the head.

(-)

Covering large distances wasn't hard for me, I've done it plenty of times before. Although the environment I was facing perked things up to a whole new level. Every step I took drained me and the heat from the sun just multiplied the Labour work. As if all this wasn't enough, I was up for another surprise.

When famous writers write about their fiction characters and state that nothing ever goes easy for them, I wondered what they would say in my case. Because apparently, going across the desert with almost no hope of being saved was too easy.

So it is imaginable how pissed off and terrified I was at the same time when I heard a blood curdling screech filling the air. It wasn't an animal. I went through the list of monsters and their annoying verbal interactions in my mind and came up with nothing. Turning a full three-sixty I scanned the area for any movement, but all I saw were giant sand dunes topping everything at its root. I am not panicky, it is one of those traits a demigod must have, but something about all this sand, heat and dryness felt as if my life force was being sucked out, leaving a coward, whimpering body behind.

Shaking my head, I took out Riptide and uncapped it. Pressing the button at the side of my watch, I looked with satisfaction as a shield sprouted out of it. And then I waited. And waited. Two minutes passed and there was no change in the surroundings. I stood there like a statue, probably looking like an idiot.

It was exactly then that one of the dunes suddenly burst, showering dirt and small stones. What came out of it made every hair on my body erect. Crawling, came an insect almost as big as my cabin in camp, a pitch black scorpion. Its tail ready to pluck the life out of me and pincers snapping hungrily.

My years of training and monster fighting paid off, because I wasn't running away with my hands up in the air and screaming like a girl. The monster attempted its first attack, its speed matching a moving shadow. As soon as it reached a feet, it threw its tail right at my face. My reflexes out won and I successfully managed to block it using my shield. The tremor of the contact went throughout my arm and almost made me fall on my back. Giving another high pitched screech, the scorpion attacked again and again, ramming on Tyson's hand made shield while I tried to stand my ground. The scorpion abruptly changed its tactics and rushed forward, snapping with its pincers. Not wasting another millisecond, I threw myself to the left and saved myself from being decapitated.

A few feet away the scorpion came to a halt and turned around. I got myself to my feet and tried to regain my battle stance. I was drenched in sweat, which wasn't good news. The fight just got started. The scorpian wasn't making any move, just staying put and looking at me as if I was some hamster in a wheel, which ironically did happen once, only without the wheel. I tried coming up with a plan. My shield already had dents and scratches on it, but still held on. The scorpion was smart, unlike other monsters I have encountered. As if right now it looked like it was thinking, just as I was. Its attacks gave away that they were calculated but like everything else in the world, it had its own disadvantages. If there was some way to get on top of the creature's back, I could stay out of its range of attacks.

The scorpian appeared to run out of patience, it charged using those thin, long and somewhat pointy legs. At that moment I realized that my plan was easy to say than done, because the monster's height was as tall as mine, trying to hitch a ride would be some challenge. So instead, I improvised my already improvised plan. In order to gain more agility, I changed my shield back to its watch form and attacked head to head, sword still gripped tight in my hand.

As soon as I achieved enough speed and closed my distance with the scorpion, I let the ground slip under my feet, sliding towards the creatures underbelly. Soon the world turned dark, over powered by the shadow of the figure. There was only a two second window to apply any damage to the scorpion, which was enough. Using the tip of my sword, I scraped a long gash on the monster's scaly skin and that pretty much did it. Again I saw daylight and the traction with the ground made me stop. The scorpion staggered ahead, unable to take over its momentum. Letting out a wail, the monster crumbled into what looked like obsidian black dust.

Okay, that's new, I thought to my self. A quick study on Riptide showed that the tip was also smeared with a thick black liquid, now slowly fading away into crumbling dust.

There was a nagging thought, a piece of information that I felt was very vital to the situation, but couldn't exactly grasp it. Like trying to remember a dream you had two days ago.

Slowly, piece by piece it started coming together eventually. Something I read long ago in Ancient Greek Monsters. The original Perseus once fought one of these himself. But the fact that mostly stood out was shocking. At the present, these monsters could be seen in one place and one place only- the ancient lands. Which meant I was somewhere far far away from Western civilisation. As a demigod, that's bad news.

(-)

I didn't know how long, but I kept moving. Once the effect of adrenaline from my recent fight started wearing off, it was as if thirst, hunger and cramps joined forces to strike me down. My mouth was completely dry and my throat ached every time I swallowed. Continuous wind swept by, flapping the clothes I wore. No matter how much the distance I covered, the lack of civilisation was driving me crazy. I couldn't remember the last time I felt this miserable. My mind started playing tricks, making me see seashores but not able to reach them. It was as if someone was dangling a carrot in front of my face and riding on my back.

My body was getting tired much faster than it should have, which really disturbed me. Dizziness started taking over and it wasn't until my legs started to give out that I realized I reached my climax. And just like that, I dropped to the ground, face first. My head weighed a hundred pounds and my eyelids started closing. Even before slipping into oblivion, I still managed to get one thought together. I was the son of Poseidon after all and the desert was no place for me.

(-)

I saw stars, I saw blackness. I saw the colour blue, a huge hulking structure, the globe, the Earth, so beautiful. I was suspended in empty space, not able to move my hands or legs, completely immobilized. The view was so breathtaking, it made me notice I wasn't even breathing, just watching the enormous planet we call home.

And then, slowly, I started moving, no, my surroundings started shifting. It was as if someone placed me in a spacecraft and hit the hyper drive switch. I stared as my home Planet along with its faithful companion, the moon, shrunk in size the further away I went. I watched as the rocks and other neighbourly planets making our solar system become a spot in the darkness. I stared as star dusts, stars and gases forming our milky way become one in a thousand of galaxies. Everything zoomed past me in incomprehensible speeds, way faster than light.

Finally, it came to an end or in other words, I just reached the edge of the vast universe. Far off in the darkness, the stars and galaxies clustered into one shape: an eye. It appeared so traumatizing and beautiful at the same time, I wasn't sure what to make of it. What came next though, made me realize I was probably haunted for the rest of my life, if I were alive that is.

"Rise hero." Said a voice.

(-)

I woke up with a jolt and regretted it instantly. A fresh surge of pain sipped through my skull causing my eyes to shut tight and hold my head in my hands.

"Easy there, you're dehydrated." For a terrifying moment, I thought it was that voice in my dream. Once my senses started settling in, I tried prying my eyes open and caught the image of a blurry figure. It was a woman, quite young, must've been somewhere around her twenties with short auburn hair.

My attention was quickly caught by the canteen she was handing me. A canteen full of water. Within an instant, my body shut down any other rational thoughts and snatched the canteen rather rudely. Placing it on my mouth, I let the liquid of the heavens wet my lips and wash down my throat. My body powered up almost at once.

The chilly night air made me shiver slightly and my dirty camp T-shirt did very little to provide any warmth. Thousands of stars in the black sky gave the desert an eerie glow, making the pretty face of the woman kneeling by my side flush strangely with the contrast.

She supplied me with another can which consisted of beans and veggies. I gulped all of it down within a minute, scouring every last bit of it left within the container. The stranger sat on the ground, placing her backpack by her side and eyeing me curiously. I thanked her and took another glance. She was wearing jeans and a flannel shirt, a jacked strapped around her waist, she definitely wasn't from around here.

"Are you feeling better?" She asked.

I nodded. I was feeling way better. I couldn't even remember the last time I had a meal after such a long time.

"Any headaches? Nauseated or blurry vision?" She pressed on.

"I think I am doing fine." I said. Her voice was calm but held very tight superiority.

Nodding her head, she got to the questions."What's your name? And what are you doing in the middle of Sahara?" Her face was hard to read, she sounded curious but with a hint of suspicion. Though what caught me off guard, was her last statement.

"Sahara?" I blurted out. I knew I was somewhere in the ancient lands, still I couldn't keep myself from shock. She furrowed her eyebrows. Her look was that of a kind lady, but every instinct told me not to be on her bad side.

"Yes, Sahara. Last time I checked everyone knew of this place. You sure you're alright?"

Her question wasn't out of sympathy.

"Um, yeah-I mean no. It's just that I have sketchy memories. I woke up a mile or two away to the south and have no idea how the hell I got to this land."

I didn't break the eye contact, but I felt hers boring through mine. What else could I do? Telling her of being banished by the Greek god of lightning and thunder wasn't going to bring us at any friendly basis. And I needed her, so far, going through the desert alone didn't seem to workout well for me.

"You didn't tell me your name." She asked.

Deciding there was no harm giving it, I told her. Her eyes seemed to widen, but barely a fraction. Made me think if I was seeing stuff.

"Who are you?" I asked.

She let out a hand for me to shake."My name is Natasha Romanoff, agent of SHIELD. And we have to talk."

(-)

"We are going west." Natasha said, a few strides ahead of me."Further south is the Libyan border and we don't want to be anywhere near it."

"You mean _you_ don't want to be anywhere near it." I corrected her. So according to Natasha, she has been on a mission in Egypt which didn't go very well. That's why right now she had not one, but two countries on her tail. Thanks a lot fates, my one savior and she just happened to be a fugitive.

"Not necessarily." Natasha said."All the borders are locked down with extra security and if they see anything within a hundred yards they'll shoot it down."

"Cheerful." I muttered."Good thing we don't have to cross them." See that is the sweetest part of the plan. Before Natasha set out in the desert to flee, she managed to contact SHIELD and fix a rendezvous point. That is where we started heading at the first sight of dawn. However, as I walked behind her with my hands in my pockets, one thing was too clear, she was up to something. Not only did she offered to take me out of Sahara, she was risking her mission by dragging me along. To make things even more suspicious, Natasha didn't even give a second try in asking how in the world I got in the middle of a freaking desert.

Another revelation I made this morning: walking behind Natasha is the most difficult job a man could come across to. I'm not a pervert, but those tight jeans showing those elegant curves on the fabric could make any guy's head go haywire. I started to wonder if it had anything to do with her job description...

 _Stop it!_ I scolded myself for the umpteenth time. _Think about Annabeth Think about Annabeth._ But thinking about Annabeth brought a whole load of memories, which just made it worse. My mind was on the verge of collapsing when suddenly Natasha stopped walking, causing me to bump into her.

"Sorry."

"Where do you keep wondering off to?" She asked, slightly annoyed.

"Tell me about it." I mumbled to myself, but just my luck, Natasha's hearing seemed to be twice of any human's. She gave a knowing smirk and I looked away, my face as red as a tomato. I tried changing the subject."Why are we stopping?"

"We reached the coordinates. Extraction team should be here anytime soon." She said, plopping to the ground.

I sat down on the sandy ground in front of her and made up my mind."What am I doing here?"

"What?"

Rubbing my forehead, I tried bringing all the thoughts together. "I mean, why are you helping me?"

Natasha chuckled lightly."That's the dumbest question a guy stranded in the desert could ask. You really want me to answer that question for you genius?"

"Alright then. I'll just get to the point." I said, irritated at her snappy tone." What does SHIELD want with me?"

Natasha's eyebrows rose slightly at that, but didn't say anything. After a minute, she gave a weary sigh and started talking again. "You have been under SHIELD's radar since you were twelve. I must give you credit for that, it's not an easy feat to catch SHIELD's attention, specially at such a young age."

I tried keeping my face as straight and blank as possible, waiting for her to continue.

"You are a hot topic in the higher levels of the agency. There are people working on your case day and night trying to figure out some...disturbing facts."

"Disturbing facts?" I asked. I was way more curious than I should have been. All these business with SHIELD meant a whole new lot of trouble.

"Not my place to tell you. But if you want an example, what are you doing in the middle of Sahara?"

Oh, those disturbing facts.

"Umm" Not knowing what else to say, I decided to go with the truth."Well technically, I was blasted by a lightning." Natasha however, didn't seem amused by the truth.

"Anyway," she continued."our director already gave word to pull you in for questioning. Which did not turn out to be an easy job, because for some reason, every time you reach Long Island, you disappear."

The new information I was receiving made me feel more cautious. I mentally slapped myself for letting her know about my identity. But in that time I was desperate. The presence of another person's company felt relieving and to risk loosing it seemed foolish.

Taking a deep breath, I tried taking more hold of the situation. "Is that all your director wants? Just ask a few questions, hand me a candy and then let me go?"

Natasha suddenly had a contemplating look, which made me uncomfortable. "You know, even in this dire situation, it is still unnatural to be so cautious toward someone who is about to rescue you. Makes people wonder what kind of life you had before." She said, leaning close as if trying to read my eyes.

The statement took me off guard. Before I could say anything to that, the distant sound of humming engine filled my ears. Both me and Natasha jumped to our feet.

"Extraction?" I asked.

Natasha shook her head."We are supposed to be picked up by one of SHIELD's quinjets.I don't know about you but the sky seems pretty clear to me."

"Right." I said. Already getting ready for the coming fight."Companies."

Natasha stared at me incredulously.

"What?" I asked.

She looked away again, looking for the sound source."And I was thinking how to calm you down." I heard her say.

They finally came. By 'they' I mean three jeeps with opaque windshields. Of course to me, all these didn't even come close to terrifying. I mean I fought a Titan for god sake.

"Percy." Natasha called from my side."Don't try to do anything stupid. Do exactly what I do until I tell you otherwise. And don't say anything, these people tend to get offended real easy, even though they can't understand a word you say. Understand?"

I nodded stiffly. "When did you say the extraction team was coming again?"

"Doesn't matter." Was Natasha's reply.

The three Range Rovers circled around us, leaving dust trails causing me to choke. Once the vehicles came to a halt, me and Natasha were back to back, craning our necks left and right to take everything in.

The doors flew open and out came armed men, all of them clothed in a way you couldn't easily distinguish them with the colour of the desert soil, their faces masked with a similar cloth. Soon we were surrounded by twelve men, their AK47s pointed in our direction.

One of the men stepped forward, so I presumed he was the guy in charge, but unfortunately, once he started talking I had no idea what he was saying. It was Arabic.

Fortunately, Natasha spoke Arabic and quite fluently I discovered. Only a few words were exchanged when I felt the air thicken. The gun man in charge suddenly started shouting and by only looking at the facial expressions could I tell that things were going down hill.

I felt Natasha slowly raise her hands and place them behind her head. Remembering her advice, I followed her movement and did it without questioning, all the while taking in my chances against all those guns. My watch was only a finger away behind my head and in that moment I made my decision. These people had no intention to captivate us, they were planning to kill us. Feeling Natasha's muscles tense up, I knew she had the same idea.

Pressing the button on my watch I waited for that brilliant moment where I would take down at least two men with my shield. But just my luck, the shield was jammed, most probably because of my previous fight.

The commander barked another order to his men and they locked their weapons, ready to fire. Just then, a look of confusion passed over all their covered faces and I heard it too.

A deep rumbling sound filled the air, much louder than any car engine. Whatever it was, I didn't wait to find out. Taking their confusion as an opportunity, I charged towards the closest guy. I took him and the others by surprise, so with a flash of movement I yanked his gun from his hands and butt-stroked his head. Using my AK47 like a baseball bat, I slammed it into the other man's face on the right and kicked the private area of the guy on the left which was followed by another skull breaking butt-stroke.

I made a mental count in my head. Three down, nine to go. But then I saw Natasha and realized I wasn't exactly the centre of attention, which also made me realize why I wasn't shot until now. She was fighting with such agility I never thought was possible. Somehow, she managed to bring everyone in a close combat, not leaving any room for the enemy to fire their weapons.

I was so amazed I almost missed the hulking aircraft on top of our heads. The propellers on both wings moving in unison gave the aircraft leverage while it stayed aloft, it was the extraction.

"Percy!" I heard Natasha shout while in the midst of fighting. "Under the cars!"

"What?" I shouted back.

"GET UNDER THE CARS!"

Looking up at the floating jet again, I understood what she meant. Not hesitating another second, I threw myself under the first car I could reach just in time when I heard the whirring of the machine gun. Within seconds, the whole field was a shower of bullets, raining down and pulverizing everyone under it. There was screaming and there was blood, flooding me with the memories of every war I went to. I had the confidence that whatever life threw at me I could handle it, but watching a mass murdering event totally proved me wrong.

It didn't take long. Soon, I heard the aircraft landing. Slowly, I crawled out from under the car and tried not to retch from the scene. Bodies smeared with blood lay everywhere, their sandy white clothing now a thick crimson.

I saw a shuffle of movement under one of the Range Rovers and watched as Natasha came out, holding her left arm which seemed to be bleeding pretty badly.

"Are you okay?" She asked once she joined me.

"You are asking me?" I said dryly while looking away towards the landed aircraft.

"Come." Natasha indicated me to follow her.

Before we reached the landing site, a hatch started to swing outwards from the back of the jet and two heavily armed men with rifles came out. One of them was completely bald and the other one had a scar running down his face.

Once they approached, bald head started the talking. "Who is he?"

"Package." Was Natasha's straight reply.

Bald head studied me up and down as if I wasn't worthy for a package. "We didn't receive any such orders. Our mission was only your extraction. There wasn't any package involved."

"I don't know about your mission." Natasha said with a warning tone."But my mission is compromised and if we don't leave now, the whole airspace will be blocked. If you don't want to spent the rest of your life in an Egyptian cell you will listen to me."

I kept silent. Natasha wasn't someone to be messed around with and if these people thought they could do it, then it was best that I didn't get involved. From the look of both men, they were considering what Natasha just said and were trying to look for options.

"If that is the case," Bald man said. "then he has to go blind."

Natasha gave a weary sigh and looked at me guiltily. "Sorry Percy, but SHIELD has their priorities. See you some other time."

I finally found my voice. "Wait, what?"

The next thing I knew, there was an excruciating sting on my side that started to spread out. A pained yell escaped from my mouth and then I was on the ground. Bald head stood on top of me, a taser in his hand.

And that is how my adventure in the desert ended. By blacking out, again.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The next time I gained consciousness, I was introduced to a light bulb, hanging from a ceiling that could not be seen. It was enough to only illuminate the desk in front and the chair I was sitting on myself. Other than those, looking left and right all I saw was darkness. Sitting on top of the desk was a single dull coloured grey folder. Deciding to take a better look, I reached for the folder.

My fingertips were only inches apart when I heard the squeaking of a door hinge, followed by shuffling of footsteps. Alarmed, I instantly stood up, but it didn't prove to do much good. The lack of light was blinding and the sound of boots hitting the floor rapidly echoed off the unseen walls of the spacious room. The rambling went on for some time until all of a sudden everything became silent and it hung over like a blanket. The air felt very thick, I felt eyes, watching me. My nerves were taught tight and I felt very aware of myself suddenly. After a crucial moment full of hesitations and contemplating, I heard footsteps again, but this time, there was only one person.

Gradually, a figure started appearing out of the shadows and once light washed over the stranger, the black patch on one of his eyes caught my attention first. The man had a dark skin and his trench coat swished along with him (and quite dramatically I might add) as he walked.

"My apology for the unconditional treatment, Mr. Jackson." Said the man once he reached the other end of the desk, opposite me, our heights matching. "But experience taught us not to leave any loose ends when dealing with… certain people."

I got straight to the point, even though I might have already known the answer, "Who are you? Why did you bring me here?"

The guy did not seem very tough, maybe I could take him down. I had the element of surprise, which was hidden inside my pocket, safe and s…

I almost had a panic attack. It was gone! The pen my life depended upon was nowhere to be felt inside my pocket! The stranger however, did not seem fazed seeing me searching my pocket and so he kept on.

"I am Nick Fury, director of Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement, Logistics Division. In short, SHIELD. And as for why you are here, I might have to ask you to sit down. This might take a considerate amount of time."

I did not get much of what he said, only his name. Therefore, once again, I got straight to the point.

"Where is my pen?"

The director blinked. "Pardon?"

"Where is my ballpoint pen?" I repeated.

"You will retrieve your belongings once I am done, Mr. Jackson. Will you cooperate?" He said that last bit with an edge to his tone.

No point in arguing, I thought. Especially without Riptide. Which led back to the question of what happened to it. If these people actually took it, it was supposed to return back to my pocket long ago. And what was I thinking? Even though I could not study my surroundings because of the darkness, I still felt the presence of other people in the room. Their deep and heavy breathing, their sweat from anticipation, all wafted out like waves and I could feel all of it. So I took hold of the chair and sat on it, all that mattered now was the information that I was about to receive. Nick's facial features did not change, but I could tell he was glad I did not take the other option.

"Right now," he started, "you are in one of SHIELD's highly guarded warehouses. Any attempt to escape will be dealt with without any hesitations. Do I make myself clear?"

I gave him a salute, which looked quite rude, considering I was slumped on my chair with one leg over the other.

The director continued. "Now that we have that out of our way, let's get back to the topic."

"Can't wait." I remarked.

"Before we get this started, I have to let you know that we have been keeping a keen eye on you, Mr. Jackson. This over here-" he pointed towards the grey folder. "contains law enforcement records of you for the past few years. To any normal person who might come across this, you are quite the troublemaker. But of course, SHIELD wouldn't waste time on some law breaking teenager. What did made us consider, was when one day, out of the blue, the news of your innocence reached my ears. Stating that you were just a child running across the country in order to escape a kidnapper. The next day, your case was sealed, officially claiming that you were no longer to be blamed for the explosions that occurred in that bus or in Seattle."

He placed both his hands on the table and leaned forward as he said the last few words.

"What you need to know, is that SHIELD does not believe in coincidences. You, Mr. Jackson, are full of coincidences and that is why you are sitting on that chair today."

Once he was done, we both just stared at each other and I assumed he was waiting for questions. I had only one.

"Keeping an eye on me? How?"

"Spies." He answered. "What do you think happened to the company who took your rents?"

My eyes grew wide. The apartment me and my mom lived in belonged to a developer. One day my mom received a call from the company and we were asked to leave the apartment because it was going to be sold. My mom was not in a very good financial position, so the news hit her quite badly. The next day however, we received another call from the developer and he said that the apartment was sold and if we wanted to stay, the buyer was fine with it, only as long as we paid the rents.

"You must understand that we did not take your case lightly." Nick Fury continued. "The world as we know it happens to be very unpredictable, Mr. Jackson. Humanity is still on the verge of discovering what lies in the shadows, hidden from our eyes. And SHIELD plays a very important role in not only wandering the dark corners of the universe, but also maintaining it in favor of the human race. Do you comprehend what I speak of?"

I assumed that nothing could surprise me again after the life I had. But hearing this coming out of a mortal's mouth made me rethink the whole concept about what the demigod community thought about mortals. For some reason, I had this strange feeling that I was about to emerge into something big, something well beyond me. Like that feeling I had the first time I discovered about the Greek gods and all the other stuffs that gave my life uncountable turns. Could I stand anymore of that? Could I burry that immense curiosity that suddenly blossomed inside me and try to back down? To avoid any further crazy discoveries? Yet again, I surprised myself when I started nodding.

"Good." The director said, taking the grey folder and opening it. "Then let's begin."

(-)

It has been three days since Percy's banishment. The camp went as usual, but Nico knew better. Percy's confession sent a ripple throughout the camp, like a tumor implanted on everyone's mind. Camper's still talked in hushed voices, as if afraid to talk aloud or laugh. Everyone seemed to accept the events that took place, even Jason's death did not bring out any further questions once Percy confessed. Nico was nowhere close in accepting it.

He saw the chain of events that took place, one after the other. Something had happened, Chiron's behavior towards Percy made Nico suspicious from the beginning. He was going to figure it out, one way or the other. Eager to solve the case, he found himself in Percy's cabin, going through Percy's bedsheet and clothes that he left behind. It still did not make sense to him, why would Percy even do such a thing? Why would he take the blame for something this horrible? Why would he leave Annabeth behind like that?

Thinking about Annabeth, Nico felt sorry for her himself. Never once in his life did he ever see her as much devastated. True, something like this once happened when Percy was taken away in order to unite the Greeks and the Romans. In that time however, Annabeth was determined to find Percy again, no matter what the cost. Seeing her now, Nico had to ask himself where did that Annabeth go? Broken down, she spent most of her days in the Athena cabin. Her cabin mates had to literally drag her out every time during lunch and dinner.

Shaking his head, he continued his work in searching, going through Percy's old jeans. There was no sign of Arnlod, yet. If it even came to that situation, he always had the shadows on his side. Nico was, in other words, the master of stealth. At the last moment when he was about to give up, he found something and it made no sense to him. A piece of paper folded neatly in one of Percy's pants contained words that both shocked and horrified him at the same time. By the looks of it, Nico was sure it was a prophecy and at that moment everything started to click into place. At least mostly everything.

Leaping onto his feet, he was about to run towards his cabin to share the discovery with Hazel when he stopped in the doorway. No, he could not tell the others about this, especially not now. He trusted Hazel for sure, but nonetheless he was afraid to risk it. Nico knew there were gods in Olympus who would still side with Percy and vice versa, if this piece of paper fell in anyone of their hands, it would mean chaos. He looked at the prophecy again and did the only logical thing at hand, he memorized it, every word. When Nico finished, he used his dark powers to make a crack appear in the ground which blazed with the fire of inferno itself. Lifting his hand which held the paper, he let it fall and watched it as it sank into the point of no return. At that moment, he made a vow that he would not break.

"I will fix this Percy." He said out aloud. "And I will bring you home."

Looking around, he saw no one and then realized it was already launch. And he missed it. Nico cursed under his breath, not because he just missed launch, but because he was tired of Percy always getting himself in a heap of trouble.

"Where the hell are you anyway?" he said, to nobody in particular.

(-)

Washington DC. After all the places in the world, I had to end up in Washington DC. Only about two hundred miles away from New York. I didn't know if that was a good or a bad thing, just that I had this uneasy feeling. One thing I knew though, was that my life was about to change, forever.

Turns out, SHIELD is the good guy. At the least that is what I think. It is this society that has been around for some time, powered by powerful people all over the world. It was a lot to take in.

Later that day I found myself in the restroom, sitting in one of the stalls. My exclusive interview with Nick Fury took a "fair amount of time" as he would say. And it involved questioning, lots of questioning. To be exact, they always had known about their coexistence with the gods, at least had some ideas. All they needed was a solid evidence and that is where I came in. They knew, from the beginning, that there was something peculiar about me. So it was quite impossible to lie to them, because they really were keeping an eye on me, at least as long as I was away from camp. But I did keep myself from spilling everything. The only good I did to them, till now, was to clarify their doubts about the Greek gods.

There was also this other thing I discovered about myself while talking with Nick Fury in that dark room. Without knowing, I had this hate and disgust growing inside me, steadily building up into a ferocious monster. I hated them, I hated every last one of those people who called themselves gods. If looked towards it, they were the reason why Jason died. They were the reason why Arnold had to turn into this twisted evil mastermind and that is the second time if Luke is considered. They were the reason why I had to go through all that pain, even after all I did for them.

I felt something trigger inside me. A warm and familiar sense started to settle in my gut, slowly creeping throughout my body like electricity. Even though I knew what was happening, I couldn't stop it in time. The whole place erupted. Water blasted off into the ceiling from the taps, toilets and any other source of water, showering the whole place. A couple of shrieks from the other stalls and boots splashing the wet floor were heard. I just sat on the pan, completely dry and dumbfounded. On the bright side, I thought, I still had my powers.

(-)

Richard Verne paced in his office back and forth, waiting for the debriefing he was about to receive directly from Nick Fury. He was nervous, but at the same time excited for what was about to follow. Nick Fury only contacted when there was any vital information and Richard could not be more glad because they already have reached a dead end. Like any other Archaeologist, Richard Verne was very curious, especially with the case of Greek mythology. Greek mythology. Could he even call it a myth anymore? The results obtained by him and his team's research during the past years pointed towards one direction, the existence of gods. They found out so much and yet so little. Proof. That is all he needed.

 _tap tap,_ came the expected knock from the door. "Come in."

A young lady with long brown hair entered the room, a clipboard in her hand. "Everything set?" Richard asked.

His assistant nodded, "Yes sir. The conference room is ready, he will be in line within five minutes."

"Splendid." He said. "Let us not waste anymore time then."

Without much more words exchanged, both him and his young assistant headed out towards the conference room.

(-)

The huge TV screen on the wall- property of SHIELD -suddenly flashed with the SHIELD logo. Richard checked his watch and let out a low whistle, it has been exactly five minutes.

"These people really like to stick to their schedule." He said, directing to Sia who was sitting on the right side of the long elliptical desk. "Good thing they didn't make me their chief."

His assistant did not seem to listen. Her eyes transfixed on the screen. "Sir, you need to focus on the task at hand. The director doesn't like to repeat things twice."

"Of course, of course." He said, then adding a little bit of sarcasm. "You are quite the company, Miss Sia."

"Sorry to disappoint sir. I am just doing my job." Was her reply.

A live video feed appeared on the screen. Nick Fury stared down at them along with his serious look he wore all the time. Richard sat with his back straight and clasped both his hands on the table.

"Director Nick." Richard started. "It sure is good to hear from you. Been sometime since our last meeting."

Giving a curt nod, the director replied. "Nice hearing from you as well. Do we have any progression?"

Sharing a short glance with his assistant, he answered. "I am afraid we couldn't do much. Your resources are promising as always of course, but unfortunately what you are seeking is still out of reach. We are hovering on theoretical assumptions and rumors, if we can't do better than this, then I'm sorry to say this is already a dead case."

Nick Fury took a moment before saying anything. Richard was getting impatient, he wanted the director to just get to the point.

"In that case," the director started, "I bring news for you. We have recently captured the subject you were looking for. He hasn't talked much, but we have enough info to believe that we are still on the right path. If you think you can get more from him, then I have to ask you to come in Washington for further more investigation."

Richard wanted to almost jump up and down on his seat out of excitement. "This is brilliant! We are on the right path indeed. But why really is it necessary for me to go in Washington? I think our facility in here is quite capable of keeping the subject."

The director's expression flashed with an odd look. "Let us just say, he isn't quite stable."

"Well, what on earth are do you mean by that?" Richard asked, confusion filling inside him. Sia seemed to flinch at his words.

"What I am saying," Nick Fury answered. "is that our precious subject has just blown up our water lines. He is temporarily being held at a SHIELD warehouse. Further information will be provided when you arrive. Until then."

"But you-" Richard's words were cut off when the SHIELD logo once again replaced the screen.

"What! He can't just do that. I am not finished!"

"Sir." Sia said. "Let us just be grateful that they found something. We were at a dead end for months, this is what you were waiting for."

Richard tried to calm himself down and surprisingly it did not take him an effort. "I guess I am getting too old for these things. The British fellows in here are nice, I hate thinking of leaving them. "

"You are exaggerating sir." His assistant said as she started getting up. "And you are still in your forties. A little trip over the Atlantic won't be a problem. No offense sir, but you are just lazy."

Richard was actually pleased. He always longed for an assistant who was easy around him. "Can't argue with that one now, can I?" he said, with a little bit of chuckle.

(-)

Agent Phil Coulson kept moving down the corridors, a file griped tightly in his hands. The last few minutes was like a storm. Out of all the strange situations he has read in the files, this stood out the most. He did not stop to catch a breath until he reached the front door of Nick Fury's office. Without bothering to knock, Phil pushed the glass door open and took another right after walking the small corridor that followed. Phil came to find the director standing, looking out the glass window that stood hundreds of feet above the ground.

"Director." Phil called. Nick Fury did not turn to look.

"What is it agent?" he asked.

"I have news sir. I thought it necessary for you to hear."

The head of SHIELD finally turned around. Moving towards his table, he sat down in his chair. Phil moved forward until he stood opposite the desk, facing the director.

"There has been a report of heavy disturbance on the North Atlantic. It includes a Marine ship hijacked and the disappearance of the crews on it. Military equipments, mainly firearms, all have been taken. All this was done, according to our security camera feeds, by a single person." Phil still did not mention the other part.

"Is that all Coulson?" Nick Fury asked, as if reading his mind.

"There is more sir. The whole ship was found covered with seaweeds. The lower decks are full of dead decomposing aquatic animals. Right now it is being held away from public."

The director clasped his hands on the table and leaned forward. His expression set into business. "Any information on the hijacker?"

Phil took out the file he has been carrying, opened it and placed in on the table so that it was visible to anyone standing there. A picture, taken by a camera, was at the top of a few stacked papers. It showed, on top of the deck, a sign drawn by a yellow spray paint. A trident.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The alarm went off at 7 am. I don't remember setting it at that time or if it was even me who did it. I am in a bedroom, that I can tell, specially because of the soft and comfy mattress I was on. It took me forever to fully wake up and get to my senses. Tiredness leaked out of me like anything I ever felt. I remember being escorted by the guards to this room from the warehouse. After the plumbing incident, SHIELD decided to keep a closer eye on me and by what Nick Fury told me I wondered if that was even possible. Have they really been watching me all these time? Or are they just bluffing?

Shaking my still groggy head(which didn't help at all) I started to get up. The recent days took a toll on me and I felt it in every part of my body. Afraid to think about the past few days I decided not to think at all. And now with SHIELD on top of everything I might as well have a stroke. I was in an officer's quarter, didn't really understand where SHIELD was getting with this but I didn't complain. It had one bedroom, dining room with a kitchen and a bathroom, nothing too slick or fancy. The bedroom had two doors, one led to the bathroom and the other to the rest of the rooms.

The warm shower was enough to get me up and going. Clean clothes were neatly folded on a chair in the dining room, a jeans and a plain button up shirt. After I changed I took a long look at my old camp half blood T-shirt. It was dirty enough for my mom to fuss about if she saw me in it. To my surprise it didn't faze me when I simply took it and threw it in the trash. I didn't know what it meant, throwing my past away just like that, only that maybe this change was for the better or at least that's what I hoped. I was spared from the thought when I heard a knock on the door, a subtle knock that could rock my world once again forever.

(-)

Standing outside was a man in complete suit. Hair neatly combed and looking somewhere around forties. "Mister Jackson." The man said. "I am agent Coulson. I was sent here to pick you up. The director wants to talk with you."

"Right." I said, trying to get my words together. "Now?"

"Yes, now." His reply was stoic and straight. "If there is no problem."

"Lead the way. Just… there is no need to bash me on the head this time."

"Hopefully that would not be required." He smiled. "Follow me."

I followed him down the hallway with doors lining the wall. Our shoes hitting the floor the only sound there was. Soon we exited the building and there was a jeep waiting for us outside. Apparently, as much as I could remember from last night since there was not much too see, this place was large enough that you had to move around with cars. Far across I could see a tall glass building erected from the ground. Its cylindrical shaped surface almost looked flat from my point of view. Apparently construction work was going on as I could see cranes hanging from the side. "What is this place?" I asked the agent.

"You are in a SHIELD compound. Everyone you see and meet around here are part of the SHIELD agency." He said. "Security is something we do not take lightly around here either, so if you have something in mind I suggest you drop it."

The agent did not show any hint of warning, but I decided to keep what he said in mind. Not that I had much of any ideas. Truth was, I didn't really know what to do or where to go anymore. What I was trying to do, I realized, was to forget about my past. Just leave it lying around in the trash with that T-shirt.

Two guards opened the door of the vehicle. Agent Coulson ushered me inside and took the shotgun himself. "Where are you taking me again?" I asked as the driver started the engine. There was a guard sitting next to me with his hand in his coat. "Because I am not really a big fan of your dark rooms."

Agent Coulson looked through the rearview mirror. "Some protocols are necessary to be maintained. Specially when dealing with your kind."

"My kind?"

"The director will be seeing you in the HQ" He said, ignoring me. "For now you don't have anything to worry about."

"Wait, wait hold up. What do you mean by 'My Kind'?"

"Not my position to tell you." He simply replied.

Well that was helpful, I thought. As we rode on, I started to make some sense of this place. We passed fields with what looked like barracks, obstacle courses and two story buildings. Soldiers jogged around the field in groups, officers shouting orders rang across the field. "What is the place? A boot camp?"

"We keep our personals trained and fit. SHIELD has its own role in the US military. Special ops ,task force, this island provides a major part for their training." The agent said.

I have seen the SHIELD HQ from a distance before during my previous trips to Washington, never thought I would end up here though. Not like this anyway. We stopped in front of a deck of stairs right under the cylindrical building which according to them is their main headquarters. Phil Coulson got out of the car and I followed. The guard from the car followed us up the stairs until we reached the glass gates, in front of which stood two other guards. Instinctively, I started to pat my pocket and once again I couldn't stop myself from being surprised when I didn't feel my pen. It is hard to describe the feeling, but it felt like I just lost one of my limbs. The guard from the car stayed behind as me and agent Coulson passed through the doors and into the glass building. People bustled about everywhere, everyone walking to their own destination. Suits, briefcases, id cards, files and folders obsecured my vision. We walked across the white tiled floor and towards an elevator.

Disclaimer: Coolest elevator I ever have ever seen, which is why I might have cussed a little when the elevator started talking.

"Good day agent Coulson. The director is waiting for you in his office. Shall I take you there sir?" Came the computer generated female voice.

"Please do." Said Phil.

"What in the Hade- Hell. You have voice activated elevators?"

"Courtesy of Stark." He said. "Said this place needed a bit of… _personality._ "

"I wouldn't argue with that." I remarked.

Phil Coulson looked at me sideways but didn't say anything. The glass behind us displayed the city of Washington as we rose. It was arguably a nice scenery, the only connection between the island and the city was a bridge which once again looked guarded.

"I take that you have already met with agent Nattasha." Phil Coulson spoke.

"I did." I said. "Would have almost considered her charming if she hadn't brought me here _blind_."

The agent smirked. "That might actually be the most charming thing you will ever see her doing. Most cases she brings someone with a missing toe or removed nails. I suggest you feel lucky."

"I've seen worse." I replied.

Our conversation dropped like a stone. The elevator door opened and we started walking again. Fewer people roamed around here. We headed towards a corridor and went for the glass door at the end.

The director was sitting on his chair, talking to an earpiece. "-that to the board members. Every time they make these stupid decisions I have to clean up their mess and for the love of god if they talk about nukes again consider me pissed. Give me the case when you think it is ready."

He clicked his earpiece and regarded us as we came in. I was still getting used to his black patch on one eye.

"Please have a seat." He called. I took a seat opposite his desk. It was until I went near his desk that I noticed screens on the glass surface. One was displaying news on a news channel and others looked like reports. "I am sure you have questions."

I nodded, trying to decide what to ask first. "I had a pen with me. A gift from a very close friend, just wanted to make sure if you have it."

"We did not come across such pen. Interesting you had to ask that first. Must have been a very good friend of yours."

Darn it. I felt so stupid. I decided to laugh it off a little. "Yeah. You people seem to be going very easy on me, why? With my record, you should be worried. I had about a hundred chances to escape this morning."

"And yet you didn't."

Darn it again. What do I say to that? I was kicked out of my clan so I decided to chill here for a bit?

"Look Mister Jackson." He said. "I am in a bit of a tight situation over here and just happened to need you. Our board members have a bad habit of meddling their noses into things that we are probably better off without. But none the less that has kept us alive till now. Which brings us back to where we left off yesterday. Do you know why you are here?"

"You want to know more about me. Which is why you have been handling me so carelessly so that you can sweet talk me into helping you know more about where I come from."

"Glad you are catching up. Now that we have everything settled, are you willing to take my offer?"

I laughed. "Why do you make it sound as if I have a choice? With everything agent Coulson told me over here I'm betting you are worse than the federal agency of the government."

The director and Phil Coulson exchanged glances. "I will admit Mister Jackson. I gave you less credit than you deserve."

At that point I just had to let out a sigh. Then again, that statement was inevitable I suppose. "So what now? Am I locked up here?"

The director leaned forward and looked straight at me. "The real question, is do I _need_ to lock you up?"

For a moment I felt this guy knew a lot more than any normal mortal should. I felt as if it was out of question for anyone to lie to this guy and get away with it. Whoever he was, experience brought him to this point and gave him a thick skin which seemed impossible to crack.

"Depends." I said. "I don't know anything about your organization. You cannot expect me to trust you. So no promises."

Nick Fury leaned back on his chair and clasped his hands. Agent Coulson stood behind us in silence. The office had a spectacular view over the city of Washington, we must have been at least fifty stories up.

"Fair enough." The director finally said. "It seems like we have to get on the same page first before we go any further. Now I don't usually do this, but to put it into a manner of speaking, I believe we need to go out for a date."

I furrowed my eyebrows. Couldn't really tell if he was being serious. "With all due respect sir, I have a girlfriend."

The director didn't acknowledge my reply and instead looked towards Agent Coulson. "Coulson, I want him assigned to the Special Forces division. Make sure it is sorted out by today."

"Yes sir." Coulson replied.

"Whoa whoa hey! I haven't agreed to anything yet!" I exclaimed.

"Make sure you sleep well today Mister Jackson." Nick Fury told me. "Your training starts tomorrow morning."

One day when I retire from all these(which is saying something) I am going to write a book about my life. Probably never going to be published though, because the crazy life I live is just way too much, even by fiction standards. My head started to throb with the same question I have been asking myself for a while. How in the Hades did I bring myself to this?


End file.
